All About Newborn (Baby) Care Which You Need To Know As A Parent
Caring for your newborn is a challenging job. When awake, your baby will need feeding,changing, cleaning, and variety in stimulation. It iss through his/her senses that your baby learns about life. Give your infant the necessary time and plenty of loving.
YOUR BABY’S ENVIRONMENT
Both you and your baby need time to yourselves. If an extra room is available, make it into a nursery. Try to make the nursery a place that will be exciting to your child wih brightly colored objects, mobiles, and other stimuli.
Your baby’s room should be kept at a comfortable temperature (68 to 72 F or 20 to 2 C). During the winter the heat at home is drying, so use cool mist humidifier where your child sleeps. In the hot summer, the room should be well ventilated.
There is no need to confine the baby to the nursery. You can give your child varied experiences by providing new environments such as a play area and other rooms at home or at a friend’s house. Also take your infant outside when the weather is nice. Special protection may be necessary when taking your infant out in cold weather (appropriate winter clothing) or in bright sunlight.
SLEEPING
There is considerable confusion among parents and in print about infant sleep positions. Your baby probably has a preferred sleeping position in which he/she is most comfortable. It is not necessary to place your infant in another position unless so instructed by your physician. It is best for infants to sleep on a firm matteress. A pillow should not be used because your infant may not be able to lift his/her head out of it.
If you go about your daily business a s usual, your child will become accustomed to sleeping with household sounds. If you are tired or have no other children or responsibilities, use your baby’s nap time to rest.
CLEANLINESS
Until your child’s cord has come off and the navel heals, it is best to only sponge bathe the baby. Remember, a soapy baby is a slippery baby! It is good idea to rest your child on a towel while sponging. It is not necessary to bathe your baby daily.
Real bathing can be done in any object that holds water and is convenient, such as a large pan, sink, or baby tub. Again, placing a towel or washcloth on the bottom of the tub will make it less slippery. When using a sink, be sure the hot water spigot has cooled. “Always test the bath water to be sure that it is not too hot!”. Use a mild soap and infant washcloth for bathing. For shampooing, the same soap or a mild shampoo will be fine. Bath time should be a stimulating, cheerful, wet experience for both you and your child.
There is often considerable concern about caring for the ears. They should be cleansed by gently using a washcloth. It is not necessary to clean the canal with cotton swabs. Wax is a normal product of the ears and is not dirt. The nose, too, can be adequately cleansed using a washcloth. In general, it is not necessary to clean, prod, or dig mucus out the genitals, particulary between the lips (labia), washing from front to back.
After bathing, pat dry with asoft towel. It is not necessary to powder, lotion, or oil your baby. Some infant’s skin is sensitive to these substances. Sometimes these provide a place for infections to begin. If you feel compelled to rub something on your child, use a lotion, a petroleum jelly or oil does not allow the skin to breathe. If you feel compelled to powder your baby, use cornstarch or cornstrach-based powder, the talc in some powder is harmfull is inhaled.
At first, it will be necessary to cut the nails frequently. This is best done using blunt ifant nail scissors or nail clippers when the baby is aleep or sleepy as there may be less of a struggle. Cut the nails in a straight line rather than curves, which contributing.
CLOTHING
Your baby needs to be dressed comfortably for the temperature that he/she is experiencing. Ususally this means dress as you dress, in less clothing than you think the baby needs and much less clothing than grandparents think he/she needs! A baby’s hand and feet often feel cool.. feel his/her chest or back to see whether your baby is really cold.
Your infant’s clothes should be washed only in mild detergent. It is good idea to wash all new clothes before your child wears them. This removes any of a number of possible irritatans.
DIAPER
Because most newborn wet frequently , they may require diaper changing 15 to 20 times each day. The number and type of bowel movements will vary according to what your child is fed. Formula-fed infants move their bowels on the average of 1 to 4 times a day. Breast-fed babies will have a movement as often as every feeding, which will be light yellow and pasty in consistency, or infrequent movement every 2 to 4 days of same consistency. It is common for bowels to move after feeding since this stimulates the intestinial tract. It is normal for your infant to appear to grunt and strain. As long as the movement is soft, he/she is not constipated.
It is important to clean the baby after each bowel movement. Use a washcloth, cotton balls, or tissue moistened with lukewarm water. Wipe gently from front to back. If your baby has sensitive skin, you may also need to wash his/her bottom when changing a wet diaper.
Soiled diapers should be rinsed in the toiled before they are placed in the diaper pail. Diapers should be washed with mild soup or detergent. If they are washed by hand, rinse enough to get the water clear. When bleaching, use a double rinse. Diapers can be line dried for sn bleaching, avoiding chemicals. Many babies are sensitive to fabric softeners. Diaper services and disposable diapers are nice conveniences